The music of NieR is one of the game's biggest sources of acclaim. Critical reception to it was almost universally positive, being hailed as one of the greatest video game soundtracks of the 7th generation. It's to the point that a number of additional albums with remixes of popular songs have been released since then, all for a game that didn't sell very well to begin with, and Nier songs are among those available in Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call as DLC. Below you can check out what the big deal is. The OST won Best Score at the Game Awards 2021.
Note: NieR: Automata has its own page.
NieR Replicant & Gestalt:
- The very first track one hears in the game, "Snow in Summer"
, sets the player up for what they are about to experience. - "Hills of Radiant Winds" is the main overworld theme, and one of the few upbeat songs in the game. It conveys an incredible feeling of freedom and exploration of a mysterious post-apocalyptic land.
- "Grandma" is one of the game's most iconic and memorable songs, playing during the battle with Hook at the Aerie.
- "Song of the Ancients" is a theme associated with NieR's village, specifically with the twins Popola and Devola. Both have their individual versions of the song, in addition to two duets where both sing together; "Hollow Dreams" is a chill, jazzy ballad that is actually easy to miss as it's a reward for an optional sidequest. The other is "Fate", a much more lively duet that plays during the fights with Grimoire Noir and the twins.
- "Yonah" is the game's main theme, and it's just as soul-crushingly sad as you'd expect from a game like NieR. The other versions of the theme are equally amazing.
- "Kainé / Salvation" is a soft yet dramatic theme, used for both heartbreaking moments and moments of determination, which perfectly fits with the theme of the characters and their will to continue moving forward even though the world around them is dying. "Kainé / Escape" is a fast-paced arrangement used for a couple of the boss battles and during action sequences. The remixed version used ver. 1.22, which plays when Grimoire Weiss returns and teams up with Kainé to help her defeat Data Hook and save Nier, is just as awesome as the original.
- "Emil / Sacrifice" is a heartbreaking, tragic song with boyish choir. Though ostensibly Emil's theme, it is used during various sad moments in the game in general. "Emil / Karma" is an alternate version, which is more fast-paced and lively and plays during action sequences and during the True Final Boss, and it's just as beautiful. Its ver. 1.22 remix makes Karma even more awesome by sneaking in a bit of "Emil / Despair", as if to foreshadow Emil's fate in NieR: Automata.
- "Repose" is wonderfully otherworldly, like a recollection from a distant dream. Most will remember it from the Lighthouse Lady sidequest.
- "Deep Crimson Foe", the normal boss music. At once both frantic and hopeful.
- "The Dark Colossus Destroys All". Perfect for the prolonged, almost futile struggle against the gigantic Knave of Hearts.
- "Shadowlord's Castle / Memory" has an absolutely incredible soundscape, complementing the rather subversive final dungeon. A different version of the song, "Roar" serves as action music and a battle theme numerous times during the game.
- "Shadowlord" is an amazing melancholic piece that completely subverts trends for final boss songs in games. Better yet is that the song peels layers of itself away the closer you get to beating the Shadowlord.
- "Ashes of Dreams", a vocal version of Yonah's theme, is arguably the most depressing credits song of all time. There are four different versions of it, the first one in English, and the rest sung in French, Gaelic and Japanese.
- Grandma / Reunion, a more epic and just as melancholic arrangement of "Grandma" that plays during Ending E, during the Hopeless Boss Fight phase of Data Hook. It expresses the sheer hopeless situation Kainé is in, unable to defeat it on her own and haunted by her past.
15 Nightmares & Arrange Tracks:
- "Blu-Bird / Hansel und Gretel" takes the original's macabre lyrics and instruments and throws in grindcore elements that wouldn't be out of place in Devil May Cry.
- "Shadowlord (Music Box Version)" is widely considered a gut punch in aural form due its use in the game proper.
- "The Legend of Nier: 8-bit Heroes"" is an amazing 8-bit medley of songs from the game, almost making you wish there was an actual 8-bit segment in the game to fit in with all the meta-game commentary.
-echo-:
- -echo-: NieR Song of the Ancients / Devola ~ Song of the Ancients / Popola by sasakure.UK is a groovy, techno-beat remix of the twins' leitmotif that makes you want to dance.
- -echo-: NieR Shadowlord's Castle / Roar "RÄFVEN is a Polka remix of Shadowlord's Castle. Yes, polka, and it's amazing.
- -echo-: NieR The Dark Colossus Destroys All / world's end girlfriend is eerie and unsettling, starting with choir and a lone violin and escalating to chaos.
Other Remixes and Arrangements:
- A bootleg trance remix of "Song of the Ancients ~Fate~" by Nhato infuses the song with a pounding and energetic rhythm while still keeping its somber atmosphere. It's quite mesmerizing.
- The music box version of "Kainé Salvation" that plays during the first teaser for the remaster, which had many people commenting on how it tugged at their heartstrings when the trailer dropped.
- This jaw-dropper of an acapella arrangement of "Kainé: Salvation" used for the TGS 2020 trailer. Guaranteed to bring a tear to your eye and send shivers up your spine with how ethereal it is.
- For its crossover with Final Fantasy XIV, the final boss of the Tower at Paradigm's Breach uses "Kainé (Final Fantasy Main Theme Version)" as a final boss theme, but a Continuity Cavalcade even just from the boss alone. Warning: the link is spoilerific to the boss fight, so you have been warned.
